THE HOSTAGE PROJECT
A class and project on hostage diplomacy.
Led by Professor David Ewald, designer of the U.S. Hostage and Wrongful Detainee Flag, and Jason Rezaian, a Washington Post Global Opinions writer and former Iranian hostage for 544 days, the Hostage Project class is the first of its kind focusing on hostage-taking for political leverage.
In our first term, we spoke to various experts in the hostage space from family advocates, NGO’s, negotiators, State Department employees and former hostages. From this base of knowledge, we built our projects and interviewed people in DC.
The Key Project
My partner, Liz Sgro and I sourced 500 keys, painted them yellow, added tags with each hostages name, and distributed them around Washington D.C. We purchased pastries to incentivize people to return the keys to Freedom Alley where a mural of current hostages was unveiled.
The Key Project Strategy
During the Iranian Hostage Crisis, Penne Laingen, the wife of a US diplomat advocated for community members to show their solidarity by tying a yellow ribbon around their front tree. The symbol of the yellow ribbon stuck, becoming the color of hostage diplomacy and adapting to other issues.
I asked myself, what is one symbol that every American can relate to that will humanize a hostage to a person who is personally unaffected by hostage taking. Keys can symbolize both home and unlocking freedom from captivity. When a key goes unused, a person’s absence is clear.
“Tell them to do something constructive, because we need a great deal of patience. Just tell them to tie a yellow ribbon around the old oak tree.”
- Penne Laingen
On the way...
a pivot, a documentary, a class review...